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Course Goals and Objectives
| Understanding Drugs of Abuse in Legal Defense |
- To present the pharmacology of drugs subject to compulsive
abuse.
- To link sedative drug action, cognitive impairments, amnesia,
and the ability to form actions while in an amnestic state or
when charged with intentional actions.
- To learn the anxiogenic actions of behavioral stimulants such
as methamphetamine and cocaine.
- To explore the mechanisms and consequences of stimulant-
induced brain damage.
- To learn how to access relevant medical literature using the
National Library of Medicine search engine.
- To learn new concepts in opiate pharmacology from long-
acting narcotics agonists, partial agonists, and antagonists.
- To explore new and forthcoming frontiers in treating opiate
dependency.
- To explore new concepts in marijuana and cannabinoid abuse,
treatment potential, and laboratory testing; from THC to
cannabadiol, rimonabant and “Spice.”
- To review the 4 classes of psychedelic drugs: anticholinergic,
adrenergic, serotonergic, and dissociative agents: A
framework for understanding.
- At the completion of this seminar, the attendee should have
new ideas about how drugs of abuse (including alcohol) affect
the brain and behavior, both with acute use and with chronic
exposure. New and potential treatments for substance abuse
will be explored. Finally, the attendee will be taught to access
medical literature through PubMed searching.